Matt Brown: Collection of Short Alaskan Bush People Fan Fics

The Right One. Part 2

Walking confidently up to Nic, Matt threw back his shoulders and smiled at her. He looked amazing. He had showered and shaved and was dressed so nicely that at first you hadn't recognized him. His hair was still long but was gelled and pulled back into a ponytail that curled loosely against his neck. Standing at a distance, you wanted to be close enough to see what would happen, but far enough away to be able to run away unseen if Nic started yelling at him.

Almost as if on cue, Nic took one look at the bunch of wildflowers in Matt's hand and shooed him away like he was a pesky fly.

"Those better not be for me!" She backed away with a frown. "I am so allergic. Please get them away!"

"But I thought you liked wildflowers, your friend told me..." He stopped mid-sentence as he realized he had been duped.

"I hate wildflowers and whoever told you that must be crazy." Nic did another little hop-step away from Matt and began shaking her head. "Look. You're a cute guy but really, I just can't deal with those flowers." She began backing away and then turned and jogged lightly back to the water's edge, leaving Matt standing alone.

Matt stood so still and even from where you stood you could see his mouth open in a round "O" of surprise. Suddenly you felt really awful and shut your eyes tight, trying to blot out the painful sight. You thought you would be happy to see him shot down by Nic. But now that you were seeing it, all you felt was guilt. Before you could turn on your heel and walk away, Matt swung his head and looked directly at you. Almost as if he had known you were there all along.

Matt's eyes narrowed when he saw you and he began walking quickly in your direction, the anger on his face unmistakable. You fully intended to fling your jacket up over your face and sprint away like a vampire in an old black and white movie. Instead, your feet betrayed you and you stood right where you were as Matt approached, the bunch of bright wildflowers still clutched tightly in his hand.

Reaching you, Matt frowned and looked hard in your eyes, trying to understand why you would set him up like that. His confusion was clear and the hurt in his blue eyes was like a knife in your heart.

"I can't believe you would do that to me. I mean, I know you don't know me, but..."

He stopped and watched as you pressed your lips together, then looked away from him. There wasn't anything you could say to excuse what you did, so you held his gaze and waited for him to walk away. Reading the look in his eyes was easy. He trusted you and you had made him look like a fool in front of the woman he was trying to impress.

"Seriously." He said with his face so close to yours. "Do you know how hard it is to find the right one?"

He was trying not to be harsh but his voice told so much of the depth of his feelings. And as you looked into his eyes, you realized that was the place where the truth lay. His blue eyes were dark with betrayal.

But suddenly the anger rose up in you and it was no longer OK that he didn't even see you as a possible date. That he had looked right over you in his zeal to get to Nic. Your jaw set and your eyes blazed. Matt saw the change in you and his eyes widened but it was too late. The words burned out of you and shot straight toward him.

"Yes, Matt. I do know how hard it is to find the right one." You poked a finger in his chest and tried not to get distracted by the hard muscle you felt beneath your finger. "I'm looking for a man who knows what he wants and isn't afraid to go after it. I'm hoping to find the one man who is smart and strong and will hold me gently during the day and make me scream a little at night."

As the words rushed out of you the realization of what you were saying and who you were saying it to hit you. He had no idea how you felt and instead of playing the game, you had shown him your entire hand.

You stopped suddenly and bit your lip, holding back the tears. "Yes, Matt. I know how hard it is to find the right one." You whispered to him and never took your eyes from his. The truth was out there. May as well deal with it.

Matt suddenly turned his back and took two long strides away from you as your heart fell into your stomach. You felt so sick and mad at yourself for betraying him and for denying Nic a great time with a great guy. You dropped your head and swallowed the lump in your throat, the sting of tears forming behind your eyes. Then you lifted your eyes again to look at Matt one last time.

Just as your head came up, Matt stopped walking. You saw his shoulders drop and his clenched fists loosen. When he turned slowly around and met your eyes, you couldn't look away if you wanted to. The angry expression was gone and there was a look of surprise and wonder on his face. He knew! Your mind spun like a Ferris wheel as he looked at you. He looked at you and no one else.

You couldn't stand it and looked away from his direct stare. It was as if he could see so far into your soul. And then he made a move that almost took your breath away. He took one more step toward you then lifted the bouquet of flowers and held them out to you.

It took all your willpower not to run to him. You carefully took three steps forward and reached for the flowers with one hand.

"They're beautiful." You whispered and dipped your nose into the fragrant stems.

"Very beautiful." Matt spoke to your heart and looked at you as if for the first time.

"There's a bug in here." Your smiling voice was soft.

"It's yours if you want it." Matt's smile covered his whole face as his strong fingers grasped your elbow and pulled you closer to him.

"No thanks, dude. Get it outta my flowers." You shoved the bouquet at him and waited while he flicked away the small bug then handed the flowers back to you.

"You're gonna be trouble, aren't you?" Matt leaned close and you felt the heat from him and his clean fresh scent. It was as intoxicating as wine. His wondering eyes and his happy smile never left your face.

"We'll see." You smiled as his soft lips pressed onto yours.